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Jaz Parks series
Jaz Parks series — by Jennifer Rardin Genres and Sub-Genres Urban Fantasy / Fantasy-Sspy / Series Description or Overview ✥ The series is set in a contemporary world in which mythological beings such as vampires and several less famous creatures are real, and follows the efforts of the Central Intelligence Agency to combat paranormal threats to national security. The focus of the tale is CIA operative Jasmine "Jaz" Parks, who is regularly partnered with her boss, the enigmatic vampire Vayl. While on missions, Jaz and Vayl are tasked with stopping paranormal or mythological beings who've taken criminal roles in human society, or humans engaged in related activities. Lead's Species * Supe Spy & assassin, CIA operative, human Primary Supe * Vampires, various What Sets it Apart * Narrative Type and Narrators * First person narrative told by Jaz Parks. Books in Series Jaz Parks series: # Once Bitten, Twice Shy (2007) # Another One Bites the Dust (2007) # Biting the Bullet (2008) # Bitten to Death (2008) # One More Bite (2008) # Bite Marks (2009) # Bitten in Two (2010) # The Deadliest Bite (2011) ~ Final Shorts, Novellas, Anthologies and Guides * 0.5. Scouting Jasmine (2011) * 3.5. The Golem Hunt (2011) * 4.5. An Evening for Vayl and Jaz (2011) Reading Order * 0.5. Scouting Jasmine (2011) * 1. Once Bitten, Twice Shy (2007) * 2. Another One Bites the Dust (2007) * 3. Biting the Bullet (2008) * 3.5. The Golem Hunt (2011) * 4. Bitten to Death (2008) * 4.5. An Evening for Vayl and Jaz (2011) * 5. One More Bite (2008) * 6. Bite Marks (2009) * 7. Bitten in Two (2010) * 8. The Deadliest Bite (2011) Themes vampires, martial arts, paranormal terrorists World Building Setting * Miami (1) * China (2) * Corpus Christi (2) * Teheran, Iran (3) * Patras, Greece (4) * Scotland * Australia * Morocco * Cleveland, Ohio: Vayl's palatial home Places: * Club Undead: A vampire club located in Miami. Supernatural Elements Vampires, Vampire spy, Paranormal CIA unit, paranormal terrorists, psychic, techno-geru, reavers, Others, werewolves, revenant, wraith, Chinese Vampire, magicians, warlock cult, Seer, spirit guide, zombies, Reaver-zombies, werebear, gnomes, haunted castle Ghostcon, necromancer-terrorist, desert monsters, gorgon, astral projection, dream state, Reincarnation, tentacled vampire, magic marbles of mystic knowledge, 1,000-year old psychic, * Government team of assassins: vampire, a sensitive, a psychic, a gadget guru and an ex private investigator Glossary: * Reavers: paranormal creatures that steal souls, transports them to hell * Revenant: a spirit brought back from the dead to fight evil * Mahghul: a cat sized bat-like creature that appears when a death is imminent * Amanah Szeya: like a supernatural justice system—justice "demon" * Maghoul: small bat shaped creatures who feed on the rage and fear emotions emitted between a murderer and his victims; like to be around chaos and death and feed off of it; * Helsingers: * Raptor: Edward "The Raptor" Samos, the most reviled criminal mastermind in recent memory * Vampere Trust: * Eldhayr--the society of revenants * Kyphas: * Coven of Inverness: * avhar: vampire's human soul keeper — (pronounced of-har). At the beginning of the series Jaz isn't clear what her role as Vayl's avhar is supposed to be. Deeper in we learn that avhar is a vampere word referring to a vampire's closest companion, someone who is friend, protector, confidant, conscience - if required - and (sometimes) lover. * sverhamin: human's vampire. Human holds onto vampire's soul. * cirilai: guardian — (pronounced sear'i (as in if) lie). Meaning "Guardian", the ring was made by Vayl's grandfather on the day Vayl was born. His mother requested it, because as she lay dying she had a vision of his death. As long as Cirilai exists, Vayl's soul can't be destroyed. Since Jaz wears it, she's protected to a certain extent as well. Cirilai is described as a ring of intricately woven golden knots with a superb little ruby glittering in the centre of each one. * cantrantia: vampiric ability *'Grief': The name of Jaz's handgun, a Walther PPK that her former college roommate, Miles Bergman, modified for her. Thus it can shoot regular ammunition in the event she is accosted by human foes. But she to fight vampires, she can press the 'magic button', which transforms the gun into an auto-reloading crossbow. * Sensitive: Any human who has died and been resurrected. They all return to life with the ability to sense non-humans, though the strength of those abilities varies. * Sverhamin: (pronounced sver - (rhyming with where) ha'-men). Also a vampere word, this refers to the vampire in the relationship described in the definition for 'avhar'. He or she performs basically the same function as the avhar, with the added responsibility of training the avhar to use whatever gifts or talents he/she has received. Because all avhars come to the relationship with some sort of raw, usually untapped power that they rarely have any idea how to wield. *'Vampere': (pronounced vam-pier') A race of vampires, from which Vayl is descended. * Wraith: (pronounced ray-th) in reference to Vayl, a wraith is a vampire whose core power revolves around the ice of the grave. So he can fill the air with it. Or shove it into a person's veins and watch him freeze to death. Sensitives are nearly immune to these powers. Groups and Organizations * C.I.A.: Central Intelligence Agency World ✥ Jasmine “Jaz” Parks (aka “Lucille Robinson”) is a CIA assassin with a few magical skills, lots of fighting skills, and plenty of sarcastic attitude. Her partner, and love interest, is Vayl (aka Vasil Nicu Brâncoveanu), a sexy, three-hundred-year-old vampire with the ability to control ice (i.e., freezing a person, or creature, into a solid chunk of ice that can then be shattered). Together, they travel the globe with their team, hunting down and killing supernatural enemies of the U.S. government—with many up-close and violent battles. Other members of their team are Cassandra, a seer; Miles Bergman, an inventive genius; Cole Bemont, former private investigator and skilled sniper; and special ops commander David Parks, Jaz’s twin brother. Also part of the action is Raoul, Jaz’s spirit guide, who allowed her to come back to life after she was killed in a battle that took place just prior to book 1. Bergman’s inventions are of the James Bond type (e.g., contact lenses that blink into either telescopic or night vision, impenetrable armor that bonds with the wearer’s DNA). Sexual tension between Jaz and Vayle builds up to a fever pitch, book by book, with a release (finally!) in an extremely brief scene at the very end of One More Bite. The humor, much of it dark, comes from the sarcastic quips traded back and forth by the team members, often in the thick of the action. The books cover about one year of Jaz's life, and in that time, the team battles vampires, werewolves, dark magic wielders, gnomes, and demons all over the world—all of this in just a single year. ~ Fang-tastic Fiction: Jennifer Rardin: JAZ PARKS Protagonist ✥ Jaz Parks: Born: May 14, 1982, Works for CIA with Vayl as assassin. Birthplace: Fuji-Yoshida, Japan, B.S. in Supernatural Criminology with Leadership Specialty from the University of Illinois, Graduated summa cum laude, Fifth degree black belt in taekwondo. Advanced training in aikido, southern Shaolin style kung fu, ju-jitsu and mystic fong chen. Expert sharpshooter. Ability to detect vampires without first seeing them. Cannot be hyponotized by same. Also somewhat immune to vampiric powers in general, making me an ideal candidate to assassinate the undead. Ability to react quickly in fluid situations where flexibility and clear thinking under pressure are required. ~ Shelfari ✥ Jaz spends listening to her many inner voices. This is difficult to explain, but several different mental voices speak to Jaz in sarcastic and humorous ways (and always in italics): Teen Me (Jaz's teen-brat self), Inner Bimbo (Jaz's slutty self), and Granny May (Jaz's dead grandmother). These voices pop up at various times in the stories, commenting on the action and frequently providing clues to solving various parts of the conflict. ~ Fang-tastic Fiction: Jennifer Rardin: JAZ PARKS Book Cover Blurbs ✤ BOOK ONE—: I'm Jaz Parks. My boss is Vayl, born in Romania in 1744. Died there too, at the hand of his vampire wife, Liliana. But that's ancient history. For the moment Vayl works for the C.I.A. doing what he does best--assassination. And I help. You could say I'm an Assistant Assassin. But then I'd have to kick your ass. Our current assignment seemed easy. Get close to a Miami plastic surgeon named Assan, a charmer with ties to terrorism that run deeper than a buried body. Find out what he's meeting with that can help him and his comrades bring America to her knees. And then close his beady little eyes forever. Why is it that nothing's ever as easy as it seems? ~ ✤ BOOK TWO—Another One Bites the Dust (2007): Jaz Parks has enough trouble in her personal life. What she doesn't need is more trouble with her vampire boss and another mission. This time she has to retrieve a vital piece of biotechnology by killing the maniac who stole it: an ancient Chinese vamp. Their cover in this mission: professional entertainers at the Corpus Christi's Winter Festival. The crew's all here: a psychic, a techno-wizard, a singing vampire, a juggling PI, and Jaz. Holy crap in a bottomless well, Jaz is going to bellydance. It's definitely, probably, quite possibly going to be the end of the world as we know it. ~ ✤ BOOK THREE—Biting the Bullet (2008): I'm Lucille Robinson (aka Jaz Parks). This is a mission unlike anything my vampire boss, Vayl, and I have ever been on. It's not our usual take them out and run; it's an undercover mission that needs the whole gang: a psychic, an interpreter, and a weapons specialist. We're joining a Special Ops team to nail the Wizard, a major terrorist thorn in the military's side. We've never gone in with such heavy artillery before, but the more the merrier, right? Um . . . nope. At least not since Vayl and I learned part of our job is to ferret out a mole concealed in our unit. To add to our problems, we're being harried by a pack of reavers bent on revenge, and targeted by a Seer who wants to share Vayl's power - at any cost. Oh yeah, and let's not forget the army of demonic, soul-sucking parasites either. This is going to be a blast. ~ ✤ BOOK FOUR—Bitten to Death (2008): Jaz Parks here. My latest mission has taken me to the ancient Greek city of Patras; but instead of soaking up its splendor, I'm here to infiltrate a Vampere Trust. Only two vamps have ever escaped the tightly bound communities and lived to tell the tale: Edward "The Raptor" Samos, the most reviled criminal mastermind in recent memory, and Vayl, the CIA's number one assassin who also happens to be my boss. The Raptor is trying to take over Vayl's former Trust. Unfortunately the Trust's new leader has her own plans. This job is going to be the death of me. ~ ✤ BOOK FIVE—One More Bite (2008): I've already killed the guy who was the pain in the CIA's butt for the past few years. But now, in the vacuum left by his death, a struggle for supremacy has begun. The CIA feels the balance must be maintained. So when a Valencian Were agent finds a plot to kill the Coven of Inverness' leader, me & my vampire boss, are drafted in. ~ ✤ BOOK SIX—Bite Marks (2009): Jaz Parks here. But I'm not alone. I'm hearing voices in my head - and they're not mine. The problem, or maybe the solution, is work. And the job's a stinker this time -- killing the gnomes that are threatening to topple NASA's Australian-based space complex. Yeah, I know. Vayl and I should still be able to kick this one in our sleep. Except that Hell has thrown up a demon named Kyphas to knock us off track. And damn is she indestructible. ~ ✤ BOOK SEvEN—Bitten in Two (2010): Jaz. Is. Pissed. She and Vayl had been operating like a couple of finely carved gears…until now. Just as they’re arriving in Morocco to secure an ancient artifact that must carve the name of Jaz’s possessor into the gates of hell if he’s to be vanquished, Vayl wakes up calling Jaz by another woman’s name. And it’s not even a good one. But since any form of argument transforms Vayl into an unholy terror, Jaz is forced to play along until she and the gang can figure out what kind of power has so vastly altered his perceptions. ~ ✤ BOOK EIGHT—The Deadliest Bite (2011): I have two choices. Carve Brude's name into Hell's bile-encrusted gates. Or lose my soul. After an assassination attempt on Vayl, I find myself pulled into a tangled web that takes the gang to Romania. So how will I save a ghost, rescue a demon, and cheat the Great Taker out of a soul he's slavering for while defeating my nastiest foe yet so that Vayl can, at last, cherish a few precious years with his sons? With careful planning, major violence, and one (hopefully) final trip to Hell. ~ Category:Series